命 (mìng): life, fate
命 (mìng) is a Chinese character meaning “life, fate.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 令 (structural) and 口 (structural). It ranks #258 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 命 an order 令 given by mouth 口. Its radical form 口 (mouth) appears in many related characters such as 口 (kǒu, mouth), 叫 (jiào, to call, to be called), 右 (yòu, (bound form) right).
Definitions
- life, fate
Etymology & Origin
ideographicAn order 令 given by mouth 口
Decomposition: ⿹令口 (layout: surround-from-upper-right)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 命 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 命
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 生命noun | shēng mìng | life (as the characteristic of living beings) | 4 |
| 命令verb/noun | mìng lìng | order | 6 |
| 救命verb | jiù mìng | to save sb's life | 6 |
| 命运noun | mìng yùn | fate | 5 |
| 命名verb | mìng míng | to give a name to | 6 |
| 革命verb/adjective | gé mìng | to withdraw the mandate of heaven (and transition to a new dynasty) (original meaning) | 6 |
| 寿命noun | shòu mìng | life span | 6 |
| 生命力noun | shēng mìng lì | vitality | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 致命 | zhì mìng | fatal |
| 性命 | xìng mìng | life |
| 使命 | shǐ mìng | mission |
| 待命 | dài mìng | to be on call |
| 拼命 | pīn mìng | to do one's utmost |
| 遵命 | zūn mìng | to follow your orders |
| 命中 | mìng zhòng | to hit (a target) |
| 要命 | yào mìng | to cause sb's death |
| 丧命 | sàng mìng | to lose one's life |
| 任命 | rèn mìng | to appoint |
| 送命 | sòng mìng | to lose one's life |
| 活命 | huó mìng | life |
| 人命 | rén mìng | human life |
| 没命 | méi mìng | to lose one's life |
| 逃命 | táo mìng | to escape |
命 appears in 100 compound words: 18 as the first character, 79 as the last, and 3 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 命 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (33)
to love money as if it were one's life; to be extremely stingy or greedy for money
Showing 12 of 33 idioms containing 命.
Example Sentences
医生说他已经没有生命危险了，但需要继续观察。
Yīshēng shuō tā yǐjīng méiyǒu shēngmìng wēixiǎn le, dàn xūyào jìxù guānchá.
The doctor said he is no longer in life-threatening danger but needs continued observation.
...元託運費「從新北騎回南投」 老司機曝3保命符:別走西濱
. . . yuán 託 運 費 從 xīn běi 騎 huí nán tóu lǎo sī 機 pù bǎo mìng fú 別 zǒu xī 濱
Shipping fee of NT$300 "from New Taipei to Nantou" Veteran driver reveals 3 lifesavers: Avoid the West Coast Highway
珍惜生命|天水圍天晴邨28歲男墮樓 當場證實不治
zhēn xī shēng mìng tiān shuǐ 圍 tiān qíng 邨 歲 nán 墮 樓 當 場 證 實 bù zhì
Cherish Life | 28-Year-Old Man Falls from Apartment in Tin Shui Wai, Declared Dead at the Scene
...橋」騎士自撞 摔70公尺深溪谷...無生命跡象
. . . 橋 騎 shì zì zhuàng shuāi gōng chǐ shēn xī gǔ . . . 無 shēng mìng 跡 xiàng
Motorcyclist crashes off bridge, plunges 70 meters into ravine... no signs of life
...哈橋傳車禍!男撞護欄噴飛「墜12米山谷」命危
. . . hā 橋 傳 車 禍 ! nán zhuàng 護 欄 噴 飛 墜 mǐ shān gǔ mìng wēi
...Terrible accident on the Ha Bridge! Man crashes into guardrail, is thrown and falls 12 meters into a ravine; in critical condition.
陳光復能睜眼、有反應!家屬:看見他的生命韌性
陳 guāng 復 néng 睜 yǎn yǒu fǎn 應 ! jiā 屬 kàn 見 tā de shēng mìng 韌 xìng
Chen Guangfu can open his eyes and respond! Family: We see his resilience.
縱火奪5命!死囚林旺仁求法官「再給一次機會」 聲請...
縱 huǒ 奪 mìng ! sǐ qiú lín wàng rén qiú fǎ guān zài 給 yī cì 機 會 聲 請 . . .
Arson claims 5 lives! Death row inmate Lin Wangren pleads with judge for "one more chance," files petition...
載到搶匪!刀架脖問「要錢還要命」 運將哭喊:我要養孩
載 dào 搶 fěi ! dāo jià bó 問 yāo 錢 還 yāo mìng 運 將 kū hǎn wǒ yāo 養 hái
Robbers in the car! Knife to the neck demanding, "Money or your life?" Driver cries out: "I have kids to raise!"
经理命令要把所有房间尽快打扫干净。
Jīnglǐ mìnglìng yào bǎ suǒyǒu fángjiān jǐnkuài dǎsǎo gānjìng.
The manager ordered all the rooms to be swept clean as soon as possible.
事故差点让他丢了性命。
Shìgù chàdiǎn ràng tā diū le xìngmìng.
The accident almost cost him his life.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 命 (mìng) mean in Chinese?
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What is the radical of 命?
What are the components of 命?
What are common words containing 命?
What characters sound the same as 命 (mìng)?
Is 命 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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